The Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) was developed in 1988 and has become a de facto standard for managing networks. In particular, the SNMP includes an application layer protocol that facilitates the exchange of management information between network devices and, as such, enables network administrators to manage network performance, amongst other tasks. The SNMP is also part of the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) protocol suite, thus allowing systems to be managed over the Internet, for example.
An SNMP-managed network has three main components including (i) managed devices, (ii) agents, and (iii) network-management systems (NMSs). The managed devices, also called network elements, may include any number of hardware devices such as, for example, routers, switches and bridges, hubs, computer hosts, printers, etc. In implementation, the managed devices collect and store management information and make this information available to NMSs using SNMP. The agent has local knowledge of management information and translates such information into a form compatible with SNMP.
SNMP has several basic commands for managing a network including four basic SNMP commands for monitoring and controlling managed devices. These basic SNMP commands include read, write, trap, and traversal operations. The NMS uses the read command to monitor the managed devices. The NMS uses the write command to control the managed devices. The NMS uses traversal operations to determine which variables a managed device supports and to sequentially gather information in variable tables, such as a routing table. The managed devices use the trap command to asynchronously report events to the NMS, for example.
The SNMP also includes a Management Information Base (MIB). A MIB is a hierarchical collection of information which is accessed using a network-management protocol such as SNMP. The MIBs include managed objects identified by object identifiers. A managed object (a MIB object) can include specific characteristics of a managed device. An object identifier (or object ID) uniquely identifies a managed object in the MIB hierarchy. Vendors can define private branches that include managed objects for their own hardware devices.
RFC 1493 (Definitions of Managed Objects for Bridges) defines a portion of the MIB for use with network management protocols in TCP/IP based networks. These objects are known as the SNMP BRIDGE-MIB and are used by network management systems to manage bridging devices (e.g., devices that connect LAN segments below the network layer). These devices may be, for example, “real” switches (i.e., hardware devices).
The hardware switches have IP addresses so that it can be identified by the management system. That is, the hardware switches have native TCP/IP communications to deploy to receive and send management information (SNMP BRIDGE-MIB data) with network management stations. This allows the network manager the ability to connect to the hardware switches and manage the switches using the SNMP protocol to obtain the BRIDGE-MIB information that is defined by RFC 1493. Thus, the hardware switches are capable of being managed through the use of an industry standard network management (SNMP).
On the other hand, virtual switches are fully simulated devices. These simulated devices have no presence (identity) on the physical network. Thus, unlike hardware switches, a virtual switch, for example, has no native TCP/IP communications to deploy to receive and send management information (SNMP BRIDGE-MIB data) with network management stations. Today, only through the intervention of an administrator who is logged onto the virtual system can such information about the virtual device be presented using a CP QUERY command line interface.
Accordingly, there exists a need in the art to overcome the deficiencies and limitations described hereinabove.